Braga dumps Mourinho's Benfica out of Taca da Liga
SC Braga stamped its ticket for the Taca da Liga final after beating 10-man Benfica 3-1 in their semi-final at Estadio Dr Magalhaes Pessoa in Leira, Portugal on Thursday (AEDT).
Braga started the brighter of the two teams and thought it had won a penalty in the ninth minute when Rodrigo Zalazar was tripped by Nicolas Otamendi, but after a video assistant referee (VAR) check it was clear he'd been clipped just outisde the box.
Otamendi was booked for the challenge, but the free-kick was blasted straight into the wall.
It mattered not, though, as 10 minutes later Braga was ahead after Pau Victor was found on the edge of the six yard box by Zalazar, and he blasted home.
Zalazar was involved just after the half-hour when he produced a stunning individual goal to double Braga's lead, collecting the ball inside his own half before dancing through Benfica's defence on the right wing and finishing with a powerful effort from inside the box.
Vangelis Pavlidis pulled one back from the spot on 64 minutes after he was brought down in the box, but Gustaf Lagerbielke restored Braga's two-goal cushion on 81 minutes after Benfica failed to clear its lines.
Otamendi then saw red on 90 minutes after voicing his complaints to the referee after he'd been fouled on the touchline, but the game was already gone by that stage.
